Update: I was unfortunately not aware of Shamus Young's severe criticism of Fallout 3 available here to link in the original piece and I regret that. It dovetails rather nicely with what I've written and it's much better executed than my piece. I strongly recommend anyone...

Back to the Future: The Game - Episode 2: Get Tannen Review

You won't need to hit 88 mph to see some serious #$%!

No matter which time period you live in, you can be sure of one thing in the Back to the Future universe: the Tannen family is trouble. Sure, Marty was able to save Doc in Episode One of Back to the Future The Game, but now things are getting into a jam with his own family. His grandfather is set to be killed by local crime boss Kid Tannen. If Marty doesn't figure out how to save him, he might fade out of existence. Again!

Picking up right after It's About Time, Get Tannen manages to do even more with the 1930s Hill Valley backdrop first introduced in Episode One. There are just as many puzzles involving the locals as before, and there are quite a few new characters who make an appearance that tie into the movies. We get to explore some of the seedier spots in town as well as visit yet another messed up time continuum alternative future.

Things are never plain and clear for out friend McFly, but thankfully the hint system introduced in Episode One makes a return for the better. None of the puzzles are particularly difficult and don't involve much of the adventure game tenant of combining things into crazy contraptions. I managed to finish the game using the hint system only once and even that instance was completely unnecessary, admittedly, due to how obvious the answer was.

Regardless of your skillful playing, you'll want to play Episode Two for the continuing story that's just as interesting as it is in It's About Time. Telltale has managed to do an excellent tie in to the Back to the Future fiction and from what was teased at the end of this episode, there are awesome twists to come in future chapters.

Get Tannen plays just like Episode One, obviously, which took some of the elements from the newer Sam & Max season, giving direct control to your character onscreen but taking away some of the more complex dialogue systems. There really isn't a whole lot of options in terms of getting people to spill their beans and for now, we still to see some puzzle that involves word play, other than a quick use of a trick question password early in the episode.

Telltale's making great use of voice talent as well. Christopher Lloyd is lending his vocal cords yet again for the good of science by reprising his role as Doc Brown and A.J. Locascio still nails an almost perfect Michael J. Fox impersonation. The soundtrack is also well arranged, with good use of the original theme from the movies along with what I like to call the "sprinkle" title card song that plays at the beginning of the episode. I can't help but get goosebumps every time I, as a huge fan of the movies, fire this game up when I hear this tune tease.

Back to the Future: The Game is keeping the steam rolling as it heads to Episode Three next month. It might have taken Telltale a little bit longer to put out this episode, but it was worth the wait. Like It's About Time, Get Tannen is on the shorter side. On the other hand, that only goes to show how well Telltale has gotten with the pacing since there's hardly a spot you can get stuck in, unlike some of their earlier adventure game seasons. If you weren't sure about Back to the Future and planned to hold off on the season pass, Episode Two might just be the final hint you should need to jump into this game.